Earth is a planet born of fire.
For billions of years, volcanoes have helped create the world we know. From the continents to the air we breathe and even life itself, all have their origins in fire. These processes have created extraordinary...

Grab your mask and snorkel and come on an unforgettable adventure! Great Barrier Reef captures the natural beauty of the world’s largest living wonder and introduces us to the visionaries and citizen scientists who are helping us better understand this...

Join an immersive IMAX adventure to experience the life-saving superpowers and extraordinary bravery of some of the world's most amazing dogs. No stranger to superheroes himself, Chris Evans narrates this inspiring true story about remarkable (or is that...

The Fleet's newest exhibition, Pause|Play, is an invitation for the young and the young-at-heart to leave the digital world behind, hit pause on their busy lives and recapture the nostalgia of play. Science has shown that play has a number of cognitive,...

As Tim Gunn is fond of saying, “Make. It. Work!” And that’s the idea behind our Make-It Workshop, a creative and interactive workshop for innovators and other curious minds. We invite you to stop by Studio X (formerly Tinkering Studio) on Saturdays to...

Stay and play—and save!—until 10 p.m. on Friday nights this summer!
Bring the entire family to experience the Fleet at night! Enjoy extended evening hours at the Fleet in celebration of The Art of Summer in Balboa Park. Peruse Pause|Play late into...

Grownups! You get the science center all to yourself (no kids allowed!) to explore exhibits at a savings, enjoy an adult beverage and rock out to music on Saturday nights this summer.
Adult Recess provides your chance to take over the Fleet's...

The first Monday of every month, seniors 65 and better can enjoy the Science Center exhibits, a show in the Heikoff Giant Dome Theater and a lecture on the quietest day of the month for only $10! No coupons or additional discounts are accepted. The Fleet...

*/
Join us on the first Wednesday of each month at 7 p.m. or 8:15 p.m. for a tour of the solar system narrated by the Fleet’s astronomer. Journey through the cosmos with us as we explore a new topic each month.
For optimal viewing, each show is...

Join us on the second weekend of each month to investigate exciting science topics. Sessions will be filled with new challenges, hands-on activities and interaction with local scientists. Throughout the year, we will explore an array of fields including...

Beginnings and Endings

By Dr. Lisa Will, Resident Astronomer at the Fleet Science Center

On Monday, November 26, 2018, the NASA InSight lander will arrive at Mars. InSight stands for “Interior Exploration using Seismic Investigations, Geodesy and Heat Transport”. It is the first Mars mission with the primary goal of studying Mars’ interior – crust, mantle, and core. More specifically, the mission has two scientific objectives:

To better understand the formation and evolution of rocky planets.

To determine the current rate of seismic activity on Mars.

Heat flow will be studied by an instrument (HP3) that will dig deeper below the Martian surface than any previous lander or rover. The RISE instrument will determine the wobble of the North Pole of Mars as it orbits the Sun, which will help understand the size and composition of the core of Mars. The SEIS instrument will detect seismic waves, whether made by the internal seismic activity of Mars or made by meteorite impacts.

The InSight mission launched in May 2018. The landing site is Elysium Planitia, a flat, smooth plain chosen for its relative ease in landing for the spacecraft and proximity to the equator for the craft’s solar arrays to maximally function. The mission is planned to last two years on the surface, with science operations being fully underway about 10 weeks after landing.